Newcastle Music Scene

It is very good condition that Newcastle have the capacity to grow up many genres of musicians. Many different kind of media or social activity can help and support local musicians.

 

I believe the popularity of media in the are affects the capacity of growing musicians. Otherwise musicians have to go to bigger city to play. Freepapers are also strong back up for musicians. There are many kinds of them in Newcastle.

Background and the locality is very important for musicians. I want to know about Newcastle music scene more and more.

All-time hit number

Time never affects those which all-time hit numbers.

Any time I find someone playing music in the pub they always sing at least one Beatles song and often most of people like it.

Those songs maybe really divided from other songs; completely perfect music and go across the wall of music genres.

These days, the genres of music is getting more and more complicated and they are losing clear boundaries in between and it is difficult to choose which one to follow… But early time super-hits were in the mainstream of the sub-culture at that time and almost everyone followed it so that could produce this all-hit songs. However these days it has become so complicated and almost anyone has different taste and sometimes it is in between some genres.

Can musicians these days compose ‘mega-hit music’ in the future? It’s going to be very difficult…

Age and music

There are a lot of kinds of genre and musicians these days and it is really difficult to say which music is what. However, what you listen to is hard to change sometimes.

When Avril Lavigne came to Newcastle the audience was almost young kids like 18-20 years-old but when the Beautiful Girls came to Newcastle the audience was bit older than that like 20-25. When I went to Morpheth to see Jazz festival the audience was like mid 20s and any age older.

Like this, by age, the music you listen to may be changes with what you expect to the music. Lounging time, meaning of something, love, reducing stress, or imaginative time, they may be depends on what age you are; many high-school kids listen to punk or rock that give you the emotion breaking something. I spent same time like this, however me myself changed slowly to more skilful music like jazz-rock or blues-rock and sometimes chilling out music. But at somewhere my music taste stopped changing somehow. I still listen to 90s rock and some genres that I really like but do not try to find out new genre. Maybe passing younger age and about around 22 the personal taste of music will be fixed in your mind because your life may not dramatically change after those ages. What you need and what you feel will be formed by then and your personality may be established by then.

As I’ve written before, music can be adapted into you lifestyle as an equipment. This may be true; in younger age some people try to show off with what they listen to but by taking ages music will turn to more meaningful thing and support your personal time.

But at this time, some music is separated from this. Some very famous musician like the Beatles their music is loved over the generations and can be fit in to any situation or atmosphere. Why is it? I will write about this next time…

Communication with fans

Powderfinger is one of the biggest band in Australia and often come to Newcastle. I went to their live couple of times. They manage fans really good I felt.

In this June they started a new movement; they let audience to choose their set list.

When I go to concert I feel it’s like obvious business; the vocalist tries to communicate from on the stage to talk to audience sometimes but it is just a shout. they play songs on the stage and done…

The voting for the set list selection is done on the internet and the audience can expect to listen to what they want at the concert.

Powderfinger themselves says “that was one of the dumbest thing we’ve ever done…” (Rolling Stone issue 679 2008 ) but what audience want is maybe different. Feeling getting closer to the band and having same time with their music is the most important thing to the audience.

The voting for the set list selection is done on the internet and the audience can expect to listen to what they want at the live concert. Releasing CDs is the main way of providing songs however the live on the stage should be the ‘total coordinated performance’ I think. Place, set list, stage direction, or anything, they all are the components of the whole performance.

Music is amorphous art and every live performance can give different experience to audience even playing same song on the stage.

Equipment of your style

I was walking by the shore to the Nobby’s beach from the station. It was very good day but was bit chilly. But there were a lot of cars pulled up by the shore and playing music loudly with huge speaker and sitting in the bonnet with wearing singlet and shortie… Listening to strong beat hip-hop and trying to hook each other… So ridiculous and just showing off…

 

I don’t like too loud music for nothing. But next moment, I just passed them and realised one thing; they are using the music as equipment. Big car, big speaker, loud music, and rough style, they are parts of their outlook and they are trying to make it as their identity but it is just like equipment. This may be much later way of music consumption I believe. Music used to always need a place to be listened. A concert is played in the hall, records could be played on record player, and radio could be listened in a room. But after walkman or car-stereo was released the style of music is dramatically broadened and fit in to your lifestyle. One of the most recent items is iPod and its commercial word is “Wear your music!” Because music does not have particular shape as an art however this lets people to transform the style of consumption or portability.

Japanese banana?

 

I hope this title won’t be offensive.

 

Check the Japanese band called ELLEGARDEN and their song called ‘Space Sonic’ on You Tube. Then move down to the article below.

 

I went to the pub in Newcastle few weeks ago. I found a Japanese amateur band was playing. They said ‘next song is Japanese song. We hope you like it.’ They started singing but the lyric was in English…

They said it’s Japanese song… The audience was feeling the same as I thought I think…

 

Couple of decades ago, Japanese was ironically called ‘banana’ because outside is yellow but the inside is white…; inside is Americanised or westernised.

However, the band sang in English somehow but the sentence even doesn’t make sense, pronunciation is even wrong, and can’t understand why they sing in other language which they don’t speak.

 

Why?

Music is, in some parts, reflection of identity. Language and culture is also features of identity. But those Japanese bands compose music in English…

There may be longing for American culture from the right after WW2, Japan has grown up quickly by taking a lot of western culture and products so may be it came from there. Also Japanese did not have popular music before that time so they just started trying to copy it.

 

But can it be a part of their identity? By copying wester style makes them look cool? That may be big point to argue about…

 

signing out…

 

As a conclusion to this blog, I have come to realize that Newcastle does have a very present and alive music culture no matter what genre. When thinking about what is underrepresented in the media, local Newcastle music isn’t on a national level, or even state level, however, there is a very strong representation in the local media circuit. Without actually looking for information about gigs, events and bands – this task has made me realize it that you stubble across this information readily all over the city. Little posters, magazines dedicated to local gigs and the presence of live music in general is everywhere. I truly think there is a strong connection between the community and the music world here in Newcastle and that makes me very happy to see!

I really love Newcastle’s music scene, I have been a massive consumer of the local music scene, and a happy one at that. Until my next blogging adventure…

ROCK ON NEWEY! XO

 

Angus Arley – solo artist

 

Lately, I caught up with a old friend that is one of Newcastle’s shiniest stars in the making. I asked him what he has been up to and what he thinks of Newcastle’s music scene… this is what Gus had to say…

1. How long have you been playing music for?
i’ve been singing since i started school way back in the kinda days and had vocal training throughout high school. i mostly did choral work and musicals until i decided to pick up the guitar in yr 10 and start writing songs (so that about 10 or so years now i guess). 

2. How would you describe your style?
passionate and freeform acoustic ballads, all very centred on my voice rather than my guitar. ive never learnt to read music or play the guitar so the song are derived from alot of experimentation of placing my fingers on the strings and i think the songs reflect that and go where they stumbled upon.

3. What influences your music?

id like to think that my music is a mix of all that i hear whether i like it or not. i take a lot of my concept of song structure (or lack there of) from artists like jeff buckley, radiohead and something for kate… but i also try and fuse this with everything else from old jazz and blues to folk or rock music. i think having a universal voice but grounded australian accent are essential to providing comfort and truth in songs, and ive based my level of australian-ness i guess from people like paul dempsey from something for kate.

4. Where is your favorite place to play in Newcastle and what do you love about it?

definitely the Lass O’Gowrie… its such a dark and seedy joint somewhat akin to a underground brick jazz den.. it is close, intimate and generally accepting of all genres with a house cat that drifts along the bar at times. 

5. What do you think Newcastle’s music culture?
i think it still suffers from a country town coverband hangover but there are still plenty of places for local music to be heard and there is so much diversity and support for it… its still an environment where bands can go about the task of working on their performance and songwriting craft with the support of friends and other bands, who are from different genres.

6. Do you have any favorite local acts?
ive got a few mates in bands who are doing well at the moment, Vaudville for one.. they’re sound is fat and monstrous(and i mean in a good way).

7. If you could give any advice to the young musicians in Newcastle, what would it be?
work on your songs as much as you can and go to as many gigs as possible because the more bands you know the easier it will be to get support slots to build your experience.

8. Would you change anything about the music scene in Newcastle?
id like to see some more mainstream bars start to develop original music nights on the off peak nights so music fans could do a crawl of sorts from night to night like some do with $10 pub schnitzy meals.

9. What is next for you?

well… i havent played a gig for a while due to being back full time at uni, so i think its time to polish up some new material and get something regular going, because once you start performing you miss it so much when youre not.

to hear more of Gus – head to his Myspace web page;

 http://www.myspace.com/angusarleycrowley

 

The Importance of Strikeback 06

Although this festival happened in 2006, I tried to find information on more recent years. I didnt come across any recent information but i feel as though the 2006 Strikeback was extremely relevant to our topic of Newcastle local music. Strikeback started out as a small town band competition and became one of the fastest growing festivals in the Hunter Valley region. In 2006, 55 bands were scheduled to perform. Some of these bands were national headliners but the festival stuck true to its roots and included many local bands as well. I think it is a good idea to mesh the two together because the major artists can mentor, help, and inspire the local artists as well as brigning a diverse sound to the festival. “Event organiser Laurie Mahon spoke to Fasterlouder, confirming his dedication to the Hunter’s culture and community, “I see amazing potential in the musicians of the area, and want to give them an opportunity to strut their stuff alongside Australia’s biggest names” (fasterlourder.com). By everything I have read and observed, Newcastle is really supportive for new and local artists. “This support of musicians seems to be an uplifting trend in Newcastle” (fasterlouder.com). Strike back 06 was a great way to represent all of the extreme talent living in Newcastle. It exposed the local bands at a national level type concert which is really unique. “If all regional cities and towns provided the same opportunities to local bands as Newcastle presently does, and with any luck will continue to do, Australian music would certainly see many more young regional musicians receiving the renown they deserve.” (fasterlouder.com).

Reference:

www.fasterlouder.com.au

The Loft Youth Venue Music Program definitely rocks!

I am studying abroad here in Newcastle and the very first night I moved here I was walking around with some friends from my study abroad program around the beach downtown area where I live. I came across this little venue called The Loft. There seemed to be a lot of high school aged kids all surrounding the outsides and it sounded like a band was playing inside. Intrigued but not planning on doing anything that night, I have always wondered what The Loft was all about. While researching on the web for this assignment I found a website dedicated to a project that The Loft is corroborating with the Newcastle City Council to provide a safe local music scene for the youth of Newcastle. It is called The Loft Youth Venue Music Program. This program is generated through the New South Wales local government cultural awards. Here is a summary of the program on their website:

The Loft Youth Venue Music program is a multi-faceted program to foster and develop local music in Newcastle in a fully supported drug and alcohol-free environment. The program ranges across a number of activities including:

* Organised after school and holiday workshop music programs
* EMERGENCY band nights for new and emerging bands
* LOADED, the annual major gig which features nationally recognised bands across three stages with up to 24 local support acts
* Managing the DAVE ARKLESS MEMORIAL Fund which offers opportunities for local bands to undertake a musical project
which they would not normally be able to afford.
* Supporting and mentoring local youth entrepreneurs in the process of organising gigs including use of the Venue’s small gig
space
* Supporting and promoting local Aboriginal and African musicians.
* The GARAGE and BEATFIX, the Loft’s weekly radio podcasts

I think that this is a great project and it really is the key and solution to representing Newcastle’s music scene along with providing a safe and friendly environment. I am impressed with the Dave Arkless memorial fun that provides opportunities to local artists. That is just the thing local underrepresented artists need to get them on their feet. This award was recently won by a band titled Men Who Drip with Germs and the award provided the band with funding and mentoring in order for them to record and produce their first cd.

The Newcastle City Council is funding this project to provide workshops such as a hip-hop recording workshop live sound production classes, along with contests through radio stations and live podcasts on the internet. I love the idea of the Emergency band nights where they feature new and emerging bands. The use of the word emergency is definitely fitting since there it is such a difficult scene to break into and to get noticed. The program also helps these bands organise other gigs and is a huge support network for all Newcastle local music. Visit the website at: http://culturalawards2008.lgsa.org.au/projects/13-the-loft-youth-venue-music-program

Also, the home website of the New South Wales government cultural awards page is:

http://culturalawards2008.lgsa.org.au/

The website has much more info and I highly suggest you check it out! theres also a blog featuring media press releases and others blogging about the value of culture and supporting the local scene.

Some Photos from the website: